


Iron Arms

by Thunderrrstruck



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Anxiety, Camping, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, Phobias, Whumptober 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:20:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27102580
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thunderrrstruck/pseuds/Thunderrrstruck
Summary: The Iron Clan goes camping, and sixteen-year-old Morgan has a fear of the dark.
Relationships: Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe) & Tony Stark, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark (implied)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11
Collections: Whumptober





	Iron Arms

**Author's Note:**

> Written for day 18 of Whumptober2020. Prompt: Phobias.

To Morgan, it felt like it has been hours since the they put out the campfire and turned in for the night, she and Will for the small tent, mom and dad in the bigger one. Morgan watched the ceiling of the kids’ tent, heard the wind sway the tree branches high above them, and wondered why she wasn’t already asleep. Will was. The moment his head hit the pillow, his snores filled the space. But not Morgan. She couldn’t get her mind off the crickets, the wind, the possibility of bears wandering into their campsite... The dark pressed against her with its ambiguity; the closer it felt, the more space her imagination had.

Rolling off her sleeping mat, she grabbed her flashlight and exited the tent as quietly as she could. She made sure to zipper the flap behind her so no mosquitoes would get to her brother.

The night wasn’t cold, but she shivered in her sweats the short distance towards her parents’ tent. She squeezed her shoulders together, making herself smaller, and shuffled across the dirt. Her gaze cast widely at the trees, the flashlight beam soon to follow. ****

_Lighten everything, don’t miss an inch._

_You never know_.

Eventually, Morgan reached the parental tent and felt around for the zipper. Once she found it, she tugged the door-flap open and crawled inside.

“Who’s’at?” a sleepy voice resonated. Her father was the lightest sleeper of the household. Even knowing that and her entire plan to talk to him, she winced.

“Dad?” she said timidly, feeling five years old all over again.

“Morg’?” From what she could hear, he shifted in his sleeping bag. She shined the flashlight towards him, accidentally catching him in the eyes. “Ouch, Maguna!” he hissed, hands thrown up in front of his face.

She dropped her flashlight hand and squeaked, “Sorry!” Perhaps it was a bit too loud, as she heard her mother shift in her own sleeping bag to the left.

“What’re you doing up?” whispered Tony.

“I... couldn’t sleep.” She stopped crawling inwards. _Should have stuck it out myself_ , Morgan scolded herself. “Sorry for waking you.”

“Com’ere, kid.” Her thoughts stopped. She took a second to process her father’s invitation before inching forward. “Get on the air mattress, there’s space.” Morgan climbed onto the mattress beside him. As soon she she settled in a comfortable position, Dad wrapped and arm around her and pulled her close.

“What’s wrong, Maguna?” he asked.

She wanted to curl up tighter, but that meant draping herself awkwardly over the edge of the mattress. She closed her eyes and let a few rounds of air circulate to her lungs and back. The night was cold, but her father’s arms were secure and warm, and she felt safe 

“I don’t like the dark,” she whispered.


End file.
